Photo Fabrication Alleging that Posters of Vladimir Putin were Displayed in Kyiv

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Posters of Vladimir Putin
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Russian-language media outlet topwar.ru, along with several Russian-language Facebook accounts (1, 2, 3, 4), published images of posters featuring Russian President Vladimir Putin, which were allegedly placed by Ukrainian partisans on the streets of Kyiv to mark his birthday. According to the post, over 1,000 posters were placed around Kyiv. One of the disseminated images features the Treasury of the National Museum of History of Ukraine. Topwar.ru claims, “These posters serve as evidence that not everyone supports the Kyiv regime.”

Posters of Vladimir Putin

The claim about posters of Vladimir Putin being placed in Kyiv is disinformation. In one of the images displaying the building of the Treasury of the National Museum of the History of Ukraine, clear signs of digital manipulation are visible. The museum confirmed to “Myth Detector” that no posters of Putin were displayed on the building.

Several photos are circulating on social media, claimed to have been taken in Kyiv. One image shows the Treasury of the National Museum of History, with posters of Putin displayed on it. The Ukrainian flag is also visible, wrapped around the flag pole. The identical photo of the museum without the Putin posters can be found on the website texty.org.ua.

Posters of Vladimir Putin
Manipulated version
Posters of Vladimir Putin
Authentic version source: texty.org.ua

It is highly probable that the mentioned photo was digitally manipulated. Several details suggest this:

  1. The perspective of the image is entirely identical in both photographs.
  2. In both, the manipulated and authentic versions, the Ukrainian flag is positioned in exactly the same way—it is rolled up on a stick, with three folds visible. The authentic version was published on texty.org.ua on November 1, 2023, making it unlikely that the flag’s position has remained unchanged over the course of a year.
  3. Photo also features tree branches. In the manipulated version, the position and condition of the leaves on the branches are identical, except for two instances where leaves have been digitally removed, while the others remain unchanged from the original version.
Posters of Vladimir Putin
Close-up of the authentic version
Posters of Vladimir Putin
Close-up of the manipulated version

4. In the manipulated version, a banner featuring a portrait of Ivan Mazepa, a Ukrainian military and political leader, is visible in the museum’s courtyard. According to the museum, they never distributed the mentioned poster. The portrait of Mazepa was created by Ukrainian artist Natalya Pavlusenko.

Posters of Vladimir Putin
Poster in the manipulated version. Source: euromaidanpress.com

The authentic version of the photo features a poster for the exhibition “European Ukraine. Mazepa Day,” which took place in Ukraine in 2022.

Posters of Vladimir Putin
Poster in the authentic version Source: armyinform.com

5. The manipulated photo also has the flower pot removed, which can be seen below the flag in the authentic version.

Posters of Vladimir Putin
Close-up of the authentic version
Posters of Vladimir Putin
Close-up of the manipulated version

“Myth Detector” also reached out to the National Museum of History to verify the information. The museum confirmed that such posters have never been displayed on the building. They also provided a photo showing the current conditions on the museum’s premises.

Posters of Vladimir Putin
Photo: Treasury of the National Museum of History of Ukraine It is not possible to determine the location in other photos circulating on social media.

About the source:

The Facebook account Георгий Кушиташвили consistently disseminates false information. “Myth Detector” has previously fact-checked the disinformation propagated by this account on multiple occasions.


The article has been written in the framework of Facebook’s fact-checking program. You can read more about the restrictions that Facebook may impose based on this article via this link. You can find information about appealing or editing our assessment via this link.

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11Topic: Politics
Country: Ukraine
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